Worth Her While
by RainGirl9
Summary: The Doctor insists that a very pregnant Donna accompany him to an antique shop despite her lack of interest. D/D established romance. Oneshot.


A/N: This can be read as a sequel that takes place about six weeks after the events of my story, "Practice Makes Perfect", or it can be read as a stand alone story. I originally wrote it as a stand alone, but then I realized how well it just happened to fit my other story. Cover made with Canva app.

I want to thank Ashena-Iulik for beta reading this for me, and for assuring me that it was decent enough to post. Edited slightly in July 2017, any remaining mistakes are my own.

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who.

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Donna maneuvered her way through the tiny aisles, occasionally holding her breath in an effort not to bump into the priceless antiques on either side of her. Why the Doctor had thought it was a good idea to bring her here was anyone's guess. She felt like a bull in a china shop as she squeezed her heavily pregnant body through the increasingly smaller spaces.

She wiped the sweat off her forehead, desperately wishing that she could lift her shirt and dry the rivulets of sweat that were pooling under her itchy, swollen breasts. Rashes were unavoidable by this point, she realized with a sigh. Whatever he wanted to show her had better be worth them and her throbbing knees and ankles.

"Are you still doing all right?" the Doctor asked after a few minutes, turning back to check on her as he had done several times before.

"Are we almost there?" she asked, breathlessly.

"It's right around this corner." He held out his hand and she took it, too tired to care that even her hands were damp with sweat.

Only, they went around several corners, and the Doctor couldn't seem to find whatever it was that he was looking for. Donna's body seemed to grow heavier with each step that she took, and her lower back was positively killing her. She'd shout at him in frustration if she could take a deep enough breath. As it was, her compressed lungs were burning in protest of her sudden venture into physical activity. So instead, she thought mean thoughts and waddled as fast as she could after her skinny Spaceman.

Finally, he came to stop in front of an open display case full of glittering jewelry. "Here we are," he announced with a grin, letting go of her hand to throw out his arms in a dramatic flourish.

She peered inside the case, examining the rings as she panted for breath. "They're nice," she offered, as she pressed a hand to her aching lower back and silently added that seeing them wasn't worth the effort of walking all the way from the TARDIS and then through the shop. Though to be fair, she was incredibly pregnant with a big half Time Lord baby and due any second, and there wasn't much she could think of that would be worth the effort of walking more than the few steps it took to get from the sofa or the bed to the nearest toilet. She was just too exhausted and uncomfortable to do much else anymore. It was all worth it though, every second of it, because in the end she and the Doctor would have a precious daughter of their very own.

"Would you like to choose a ring?" the Doctor asked as he bounced excitedly on his toes.

She shrugged, consumed with thoughts of how she could possibly make it back to the TARDIS.

"C'mon, Donna. At least tell me which one you like best."

She rolled her eyes, but looked again, scanning for something purple to match the necklace he had given her the last time they were on Earth. She almost pointed to the first purple ring she saw, but then she stopped herself with the realization that she might as well get something nice for her effort rather than the gaudy plastic thing. Eventually, she settled on a ring with a small heart shaped diamond surrounded by tiny purple gems. "That one," she said, pointing it out.

The Doctor nodded and eagerly reached in for it, pulling it out with a grin on his face. "Try it on," he suggested, holding it out for her.

Donna shook her head. "It won't fit," she protested. Her fingers had swollen up to nearly double their normal size, and she'd had to stop wearing the biodamper months ago.

"Just try," he insisted.

So she held out her hand, and he slipped the ring easily onto her finger; a perfect fit. She couldn't help but smile as she admired the piece against her pale skin. "It's lovely, but did you know that it would fit?"

"Oh, I stopped in a while ago and found it," he said, with a casual shrug. "I thought it would make the perfect engagement ring, so I went ahead and bought it. I had them specially modify it so that the size can easily be adjusted with a clever little tool. That way you can shrink it back up after the baby is here, and then readjust it in the future each time you need...erm, if it needs to be adjusted again, that is." He chuckled. "I'm just really glad you chose the right one. It would have been a bit awkward if I'd had to tell you to try again."

But Donna didn't catch his little slip-up about the many future children he'd seen in their timeline. In fact, she hadn't heard most of what he'd said for her heart pounding in her ears. "W-what d-did you just say?" she stammered.

The Doctor smiled softly and dipped down onto one knee, his eyes warm as he looked up at her. "Donna Noble, my precious Earthgirl and mother of my child, will you marry me?"

Donna gasped, bringing up both hands to cover her mouth. She couldn't hold back tears as love for her Spaceman filled her heart and threatened to overwhelm her. He'd done all of this and she hadn't had the slightest clue what he was planning! "Yes, yes of course," she managed to say. "Of course I'll marry you!"

"Molto bene!" He beamed up at her. "Now is the part when I'd put the ring on your finger, but it seems you're already wearing it."

She laughed and wiped her eyes. "Well, at least you can still do the next bit properly."

"What part is that?"

She smiled and waved her hand, watching as her new engagement ring shone in the light. "Stand up and I'll show you."

He did as she asked, and she engulfed him in a tight hug, her pain and exhaustion forgotten for a moment. "This," she said, before she pressed her lips to his in a kiss. He melted into her, pressing himself as close to her as he could get with her round belly in the way, and then he pulled awah just long enough to murmur into her ear. "I love you." He pressed a featherlight kiss to her neck, his warm breath tickling her skin. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," she said. "So, so much."

After exchanging a few more kisses and quiet words, the Doctor took Donna's hand in his and led her out through the back door of the antiques shop and into the alley where the TARDIS was parked.

"Wait, why didn't we just go in through that door?" Donna asked, trying and failing to feel irritated at him despite her aching body. "It would have been so much closer."

The Doctor pulled at his ear. "Yeah... but it would have made things a bit anticlimactic though, don't you think? And you'd have missed out on seeing all of the other antiques."

"Well, we couldn't have had that, could we?" she teased, and gently nudged his shoulder with hers. "I think I could have handled missing out on them, to be honest."

"Where's your sense of adventure gone, Donna?" he teased.

"Oh, it's been away on holiday for a while now," she said, and gave her swollen belly a pat. "Might be back soon, but for now I'm all about adventures in sleep." She'd definitely need a hot bath and a good long lie down to recover from their latest little adventure, that was for sure. And if she were lucky, her new fiancé would join her for her nap and a nice cuddle.

"Well, that's too bad," he said, as he held the TARDIS door open for her. "I read about a special massage technique that I wanted to try out on you, but if you're not up to trying anything new…"

"Prawn," she hissed, but she couldn't stop smiling. "Actually, that sounds wonderful."

He pulled her in for another long hug just inside the door. "Anything for you, my dear almost-wife."

"Mmm. And later, if I'm not too tired, I might show you what humans usually do after they get engaged," she whispered into his ear.

"Ooh. It's a deal," he whispered back, and then closed the small distance between them to kiss her again.

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The End

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A/N: Thanks so much for reading!


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